Tobii, SteelSeries Partner on Eye Tracking for Video Games

Swedish company Tobii Technology and gaming manufacturer SteelSeries have partnered to launch the first mass-market consumer eye-tracking device for gamers.

Imagine playing a soccer video game and being able to select the player to whom you want to pass the ball with just your gaze. Or aim your flashlight or weapon in a first-person shooter by simply looking at your target. The technology sounds futuristic, but it's here.

Swedish company Tobii Technology and gaming manufacturer SteelSeries on Friday will partner to launch the first mass-market consumer eye-tracking device for gamers. The companies are gearing up to unveil the technology at the Consumer Electronics Show next week.

Your eyes are used to signal intent and interest, guide your actions, and express emotions during a game, enabling a more immersive experience and scenarios that would have never been possible before. In a boxing game, for instance, the opposing player would be able to see where you're looking, and might be able to block your attack. Or, if you step into a bar in a game, the virtual bartender would give you a nod, because the game knows where you're looking.

"As the leader in eye-tracking technology, Tobii is positioned not only to impact but also to change the way that gamers experience and play games," Bruce Hawver, CEO of SteelSeries, said in a statement. "Eye tracking is something entirely different and exciting for this consumer market, and we are thrilled to be working alongside Tobii and the developer community to deliver an entirely new technology to this industry."

The companies say the technology will allow gamers to do more at once. It can be used to add an extra aiming mechanism, more easily access menus and commands, or make complex controls easier to learn.

Game developers who want to get in on the action and be part of the first wave of eye-tracking games can preorder the Tobii EyeX Developer Kit, which includes eye-tracking hardware. The kit is available for $95 from Jan. 3 - 31 with the promotional code "CES2014" (regularly $195), and will begin shipping in March.

Angela has been a PCMag reporter since January 2012. Prior to joining the team, she worked as a reporter for SC Magazine, covering everything related to hackers and computer security. Angela has also written for The Northern Valley Suburbanite in New Jersey, The Dominion Post in West Virginia, and the Uniontown-Herald Standard in Pennsylvania. She is a graduate of West Virginia University's Perely Isaac Reed School of Journalism.
More »